Inclement weather is a potential danger to buildings, particularly residential houses. That danger can be magnified for residential houses that are rental properties, second homes, etc. which may be remote from the owner/caretaker and go unoccupied for periods of time.
While some inclement events, for example hurricanes, provide sufficient warning for an owner or caretaker (or someone designated by them) to go to the building and make sure that all windows and doors are closed and secured and, if necessary, additional protections such as storm shutters and storm doors are secured, many weather events are more localized, for example, hail storms, unusual sleet/snow/freeze events in warmer areas, sudden dust/wind/rain storms, and tornadoes, and may occur without much warning. Moreover, it is common for weather paths to change such that a property may initially appear to be clearly outside the path of a weather event, only to have conditions suddenly change placing the property squarely within the path of the weather event. For those situations, it is often difficult or impossible for the owner or caretaker (or their designee) to take action to secure the building in time.
Damage caused by such “short-warning” weather events, if they break windows or breach the exterior envelope of the building can be costly to the property owner and, where insurance coverage is involved, to insurance companies.
Recently, smart phones have given people the ability to remotely control aspects of the home like window blinds/shades, lights, and windows using their phone. In addition, some window technology has taken automation a step further and include rain sensors that, when they detect rain will automatically cause an open window to close.
However, the remote control technologies require that a person be aware of the localized danger, despite being removed from the area. In the case of the self-closing windows, they purely react to the sensing of rain that is already occurring and cannot take into account other types of weather events.